Is a bankruptcy mediation voluntary, or can the court order it?

It can be either. Parties may agree to mediate voluntarily, or a bankruptcy court may order the parties into mediation, often under the court’s local rules or a specific order in the case. The mediator may be a sitting or former bankruptcy judge or a non-judicial professional with relevant experience. Regardless of how it begins, the process relies on the parties’ self-determination — the mediator facilitates but does not decide — and the confidentiality protections that apply to settlement communications generally extend to the mediation. Whether voluntary or court-ordered, the aim is the same: to reach a negotiated resolution that the parties can then bring to the court.